Predetermine
by Hakumei-chan
Summary: RokuSor, AU Do you believe in reincarnation? Do you know how is it to die not once but a hundred times? Did you ever feel that you're different from others? Do you know how long I've been looking for you?
1. Prologue

**Predetermine**

_Prologue:_

_When the universe was created, four gods and goddesses were born to protect the balance of the universe: Terra the God of Earth, Aquas the Goddess of Water, Ardrlin the God of Fire and Symplis the Goddess of Wind. Yet together, they can't bear to be in one place with each other. The universe began to tip; imbalance and life began to die. The universe responded by creating another god it believes could create a balance for the order; what better way to balance the universe by creating a god controlling two elements? _

_Thus, the God of Light and Darkness, Reimei was born._

_The older deities were furious with the universe's decision, choosing with their consent but they couldn't retaliate when it was the universe was just as old as them, and so they watch the young god performing the duty the universe have created him to do. _

_The younger god was just as the universe wanted to be, order was immediately restored with his power and new life began to form in the world. Small signs of life appeared and soon evolved over time and humans soon appeared. _

_Needless to say the other gods were jealous of the young one's powers. The ability of controlling two elements is their dream and the younger god using them with ease only increased that jealously. For the first time in the universe's history the gods and goddesses came together and plotted a conspiracy behind the young god's back as he carefully kept the balance of the universe in check. _

_However, Reimei was not as oblivious as they think; the shadows were his eyes and ears. They were also his comfort from the treatment the other gods have given him. Whatever the gods were going to do to him, he was prepared. If he was going to be framed, he shall drag the other gods down with him. The shadows shall be his witness to their demise along with the universe-their creator and father of everything._

_The awaited day wasn't long as Reimei predicted but the force the young god to the trial of treason rebelling the universe with false but hard evidence against him. Many false witnesses gave their stories of secretly helping the young god only because he promised them death if they were not to comply. The universe was shook beyond reason and the gods look down at him with suppressed glee in their eyes. His punishment was that his body and soul would be separated. His soul will be split in half – one soul devoid of darkness and the other will be devoid of light but before they manage to split Reimei's soul, the young god laughed for the first time since he was born._

_His power were strong enough to destroy the binds the gods have placed him with his powers began pulling the other gods and goddesses souls from their bodies. The young god vowed: "One day we shall meet again when my halves are reunited again and all of you shall die by your own jealous desires."_

_One-by-one the gods cursed at the young one before they fell on heaven's floor as their soul were sucked away from their bodies and dragged down to the land of life and Reimei's fragmented soul was the last to be reincarnated._

_The universe mourned for the heaven's loss and feared Reimei's wrath. The kind god it created fell into the cycle of hate just as the others have had. So it devised a cycle for all the gods: all their reincarnations shall die before they meet and before their powers are at it's peak. That way, the gods were to never return to the heavens ever again and the cycle will repeat itself over and over again until the end of time…but destiny was not so convinced with the universe's doing. As the God of Light and Darkness vowed, they will meet again, one day. For now, the universe could only watch and wait._

/--/

Sixteen years ago…

"No!" a woman in labor as the doctors franticly tried to strap her down. She had been wailing for the past twenty-four hours and the doctors and nurses have been trying to calm her down and reasoned with her that the child couldn't be a monster. "He's a monster! My child must not be born!"

"He's your child," a nurse tried reasoning. The woman's eyes flashed a wild look, already half-mad from the pain.

"I will not give birth to a monster!" she gritted with clenched teeth. "I rather die first." The doctor who has been by her side since the labor started, shook his head, finally seeing there was no possible way to reason with her anymore and ordered a caesarean section performed on her. The woman's eyes widen, terrified and wailed as she was taken away, still wailing for them not to go along with the operation.

It was then an hour later a child was born and the mother died along the way. The doctor looked down at the infant with small strands of blonde hair and blue eyes looking back at him with curiosity.

"The mother has no other living relatives," the nurse informed him. "Shall we sent him to the orphanage?" The doctor nodded.

"What is the child's name," the doctor asked.

"The mother didn't name the child," the nurse informed. "She died once she delivered him." The doctor soaked in the information he was given.

"Roxas," the doctor finally said. The nurse eyed him suspiciously. "The infant's name will be Roxas."

"Are you sure?" the nurse asked.

"Would you rather have it being called a monster?" The doctor questioned. The nurse's eyes flashed sorrow and nodded.

"I'll get the forms," the nurse responded, walking away.

/--/

Author's Rambling: How did this story get started? I blame my lazy English teacher for her retarded vocabulary short stories we have to write. This was supposed to be an entirely different story but my mind chose otherwise. –Glares- Stupid brain.

And I'm not good with hospital scenes as you all can see. Review anyways and tell me how do you feel about this story.


	2. Damn Drama

Chapter 1

_Six years ago…_

_"Monster!" a man cried as a policeman took him away behind cuffs. Ten-year-old Roxas stood behind a man working for the children's service as he watched his fifth foster father was taken away for abusing him. Big black bruises were shown throughout his arm and legs but he didn't complain. "That child has no soul in his eyes! He never laughed, cried or screamed. HE MURDERED MY WIFE!" Roxas watched as the policeman pushed him into the car._

_"Wave goodbye to your father," the worker said. Roxas stared at the man as if he was insane and continued staring from a distance._

_"Don't give me another father like him," Roxas responded before walking towards the workers car, never looking back._

_"See you in hell, demon!" he heard the man's last cry._

/--/

Present Day….

"Have you heard of the news about the new student?" the gossips spread like wildfires all over Twilight High. It's the student's entertainment after football season and everybody would know the latest gossip in less than an hour. A chestnut haired brunet walked down the halls quietly and unnoticed by the other peers as they continued their gossip. Sixteen year-old Sora Tadashi walked down the halls of high school as a nobody and his only best friend is his English teacher, Mr. Cloud Strife: the one man that's been keeping him sane since the beginning of high school. He walks into his first period class and finds that not only Mr. Strife was there, an blonde individual with his back turn were talking to his best friend which he presumed is the new student. His teacher was the first to notice and greeted the boy with a small wave.

"Good morning, Sora," he said. "How was your weekend?"

"It was boring and I had a pile of homework to do," Sora responded a bit grumpily. Cloud nodded.

"Sounds like fun," he responded with sarcasm he gave a gesture to the blonde. "As you have heard from the gossips just now, we have a new student and he has me the same period with you. Turn around and say hello to your partner for this semester, Roxas." The blonde turned around and Sora tried his best not to let his jaws drop.

Roxas stood there with an aura of authority and power radiating from him. Sora also noticed Roxas wore a lot of black: black jeans, black sweater, black shoes and a black wristband. In short: the students will brand the new guy emo, punker or goth. Roxas cleared his throat and Sora snapped out of his thoughts, realizing he was staring at the new kid all this time.

"A-Ah, I-I'm sorry," Sora said, his cheeks burned. He couldn't think of anything to say but he was saved when the bell rang. He felt a push from behind and an all-familiar female voice.

"Move it, you're blocking the entrance," said a girl with red hair ordered as she pushed Sora aside. Kairi Vigil, Sora's first crush from middle school but that crush was gone when she became popular and began treating the brunet like dirt. Cloud talked to Roxas in a low tone, before the blonde sat down on the desk that was next to the window. Sora sighed before sitting down on his desk that is right next to Roxas and gave his teacher a pout thinking his teacher's torturing him cruelly.

"First off," Cloud began, "We're not changing seats anytime soon." The girls have the looks of disappointment seeing they're not going to be able to sit next to the new student anytime soon. To the entire school body, the students and teachers believe the blonde English teacher is a mind reader, knowing what students were going to say before they even say it. In truth, Cloud Strife just knows his students and the teachers too well. Especially with the looks in their eyes, their looks give it all away. When the class finally sat down, he stood in front of the class and cleared his throat.

"All right class, to start of the new week, we have a new student," Mr. Cloud Strife began in a stern voice. "Roxas please stand up and introduce yourself to the class." The students turned to the back and broke into whispers as the 'cute emo blonde' faces the class with an expressionless look on him. He spoke with a tone that was just as emotionless.

"My name is Roxas Anderson and I'm sixteen. I have no hobbies or pastimes except reading. No, I'm not interested in anybody and I'll assume you're a whore if you dare try to seduce me, flirt or whatever. Don't try and pick a fight with me because you'll find your ass on the ground with a broken wrist, I don't plan on getting suspended on the first week of school."

"Anymore threats, Roxas preferably with no colorful words, please?" Mr. Strife asked with slight annoyance.

"Yeah," Roxas responded. "The girl in pink – giving me that look will only work on desperate guys. Do yourself a favor: get a fake ID, go to the nearest night club, and find the ugliest man to screw there." The class broke into fits of giggles as Kairi's flirty face melted to a furious look she muttered something under her breath before turning away. Mr. Strife rubbed his forehead with irritation now.

"All right, sit down, Roxas," he ordered. "And everybody take out your text and turned to page one-hundred fifty-two. As much as I hate these books and the state requirements, I still have to go over with all of you about free verses…" Sora and partially half the class dosed off immediately as soon as Cloud began his lecture. The brunet has his mind trailing him back to the blonde student that sat right next to him, writing on a piece of paper. Sora couldn't get his eyes off of the blonde and the classroom seemed distant to him now. It seemed like an eternity until Roxas finally stopped and tilted his head slightly for their eyes to meet. Sora didn't breathe.

Roxas' eyes were transfixed and hypnotizing, it was as if the blonde was really staring into his soul. The thought terrified him that he turned his attention to the board just in time to hear what the class was going to do today.

"Last weekend's homework was just to write a poem tonight and we're going to read them out loud to the entire class…I hope half you wrote some decent ones and not obscene ramblings- and half of you know who you are." Some students ducked their heads in nervousness, knowing they will get a poor grade in this period today. Cloud's eyes narrowed. "Great, I know who I'm going to call home tonight now…who wants to start out first." Sora sighed, this was going to be just one of those days.

/--/

Junior year and still PE is required. Roxas could just curse the founder for making three years of physical education a requirement. He wasn't unfit or anything, he always have a reasons for things whether it was logic or instinct, he has a reason. Maybe one of the reason why is because of the uniform requirement. Wearing a gray t-shirt and black shorts just like everybody else maybe one of the reason why; he prefers being an individual wearing his own clothes. Damn school.

His teacher, some man named Mr. Highwig…or was it Mr. Highwind, was some man in his thirties, chewing on a piece of toothpick Roxas mused the reason why was because smoking was prohibited.

"All right class," Mr. Highwind began with a gruff and annoyed voice – probably cause lunch was next and he's hungry. Roxas frowned; he has to put this up for the rest of the year? Damn it. "We're going to team up and play volleyball, it'll be consist of eight people per team and the leaders this time will be: Tidus, Wakka, Selphie and Kairi. Four boy and girls in each team and don't choosing all your friends or I'm deducting points from your grades." Roxas thought for a moment…Kairi sounded familiar…

_"Oh, the bitch who pushed Sora and I insulted in English this morning."_

He caught a glimpse of her talking to a group of students looking at him and resisted his urge to roll his eyes as Tidus picked him. Once the leaders finished picking their teams, Kairi immediately declared war on Tidus' team, which made Roxas roll his eyes this time and walked over to one court. Tidus came over and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"So new kid, you do know the rules of the game, right?" he asked. Roxas nodded in response, at the same time, he was irritated with the touching.

"Don't-"

_SMACK!_

Roxas felt the ball slammed the back of his head and it was rather painful. He immediately turned around to see an innocent looking Kairi smiling back at him.

"Sorry! My aiming was a bit off," she said with a smile. Roxas' eyes narrowed before turning around.

_"Oh…that bitch is going to get it now."_

That, Roxas can promise to anyone that isn't infatuated with her. He took the ball from Tidus before the other boy could lecture him about teamwork.

"I'm serving," Roxas said plainly, going to the serve line, waiting for everybody to get ready. He served with a hybrid shot before heading towards his position. A guy from Kairi's team returned the ball to Roxas and he returned it with a spike. Looks like most of Kairi's teammates have some experience with the game.

_"They're not bad."_

Roxas mentally grinned; getting Kairi would take a little effort after all. Moments later, they hit the ball back at him, just the hit he want. He jumped slightly and smacked the ball towards Kairi when the girl was slightly off guard. It managed to smack her off her feet. A satisfied feeling washed over Roxas seeing he scored a point and knocks the bitch away.

_"Sweet spike."_

Kairi fell on her behind and almost immediately, her friends swarmed the red-brunette. Tears began to fall and everybody gave Roxas a dirty look while the blonde gave them an equally deadly look in return. She's faking the cry for Pete's sakes.

_"Damn Drama Queen."_

Cid came and laid his eyes to the lone blonde who was obviously the culprit of the event.

"What the heck happened here?" he demanded. Kairi pointed at Roxas, still sobbing, talking between her hiccups.

"He…pur-purposely spiked me," she cried. Cid turned to Roxas with an angry look on his face.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you any manners, punk?" Cid asked.

"She's dead," Roxas responded plainly. Silence reigned; even Kairi stopped crying for a moment leaving Roxas to continue. "Women also have equal rights as men don't they? Then shouldn't they be treated equally like we do as well? If it was a guy who spiked me, I would have spiked them back." Cid rubbed his temples.

"Go to the office, punk," Cid ordered. "And don't show your face for the rest of the period."

/--/

It was odd as Sora mused how Roxas has all the same classes with him in every period and it was like somebody had cursed him when the new student has to sit next to him in class. Then again, many of the students in school avoid him like a plague and the blonde was the only one who tolerates him.

Now it's the last period of the class and the teacher made up the most ridiculous assignment for them: Draw your partner. When you're done, show your partner your picture of him/her.

That meant drawing Roxas, looking at Roxas and possibly checking Roxas out. Sora's face turned beat red again, almost stabbing his portrait out of frustration of that thought.

"Bad Sora. Bad, bad dirty thoughts…stupid mind."

He felt a finger tapping on his shoulder and turned around to see Roxas standing right next to him. Instinctively he covered his painting with his hands. He grimace, knowing his palm will be colorful after this.

"I'm done with my painting," Roxas pointed at his portrait. "Wanna see?"

Sora knows he's staring at Roxas with a stupor look on his face. It was probably because Roxas was almost speaking to him as an equal with a more expressing tone(but only by a little) rather with the monotone one than he talks with in class. He couldn't help it; he barely noticed Roxas removed his hands that were covering his portrait.

"It's a nice painting…" Roxas said, Sora snapped out of his thoughts and realized Roxas was talking about his drawing. "But it still needs a bit more shading, don't you think?" Sora nodded dumbly. He was always self-conscious of his work even if he would always get positive remarks from them. Roxas place a hand on Sora's shoulder. "I can't wait to see it when the painting's complete." Sora mentally scolded himself to stop blushing.

"Y-You really don't…" Sora began. The bell rang and the students put their portrait in a cabinet especially for their period while others took them home to finish. Sora cleaned his brushes and places his pencils in his box. He caught a glimpse of the blonde walking away and turned to say good-bye.

"B…" Roxas was already out the door and disappear in the sea of students, ignoring everybody and everything once again. "…ye?"

It's official: the damn blonde is bi-polar in the eyes of the brunet.

/--/

They say if you stay out in the night for too long, you'll never see the next day. Everybody in Twilight Town seems to believe that. Around nine, everybody would be back in their homes with the doors lock and windows shut, enjoying their family times while ignoring the outside world. Nobody knows what lurk outside the night and they don't want to know. There are some humans who would break that rule and wander outside.

"I smell human flesh…" a growl came from the underground tunnels. Red glowing eyes flashed in the darkness, following the scent. The thing, for one, isn't human, that's pretty noticeable with the large body and long tail.

It walked and crawled close to the darkness, hearing footsteps with each step it took. Warm, hot delicious blood will it finally be able to taste. It stopped the figure walking down the tunnel next to a rail. It grinned, couldn't contain its excitement or hunger, it charged towards the figure. His prey turned but didn't have time to get out of the monster's path as the beast grabbed the figure with its claws, holding it's prey in place.

"Didn't your mother ever told you the horrors of what this town contains?" the monster sneered at his latest meal. "Or are you one of the foolish ones."

"…Neither," the figure said in an unusually calm voice. The monster's eyes narrowed, sensing no fear.

"You can't hide your horror, mortal. I can smell it in you," the monster continued, showing his set of razor sharp fangs shining under the moonlight.

"That's just sweat and perspiration you're smelling," his meal responded. Before the monster could retort, he began to choke from his blood. It turned around to see a black spear struck behind his back. In horror, it watched the weapon twisted and turned by itself. "Wha-" He didn't finish when the weapon shot upward, slicing it in half and the figure watch the blood rain down him.

"I'm the real monster here," said the dark figure as blood spewed everywhere and soaking his clothes in the crimson liquid. "It's a shame I didn't have the time to _enjoy_ your demise."

/--/

Chapter Completion: December 13, 2007 – December 23, 2007

Author's Rambling: Vacation is here! But that also meant that I stay at the house more and my house happens to be very cold. My fingers are frozen here. Brrrr!

In this fic, I feel like bashing Kairi, I dunno why.


	3. Water is Bad

Chapter 2

_Sora saw a clock in his dream reading midnight. He has no idea why he's dreaming of a clock and half the time he didn't understand his dreams. The clock rang, startling the boy when the ground started to shake and pillar water shot upward all around him. The brunet panicked. For the past several nights now, he's been having the same dream over and over again. Usually dreams like this means nothing once or twice, but having these dreams for almost month now must mean something and each night, the dreams become clearer and clearer each time._

_Then he heard metals clanging and explosions coming towards his direction. Sora looks around, trying to find the source of the sound among the moving pillars. The sound was close but the pillars were blocking his views. It was annoying how the pillars are here blocking his view. He wants to know so badly. _

_Then he heard screams from a distance and moments later a body came through a moving pillar, beaten and torn up like a rag doll. A pool of blood leaked out of the body and Sora was frozen in shock, glancing at it. The body's Roxas, bleeding and the boy wasn't moving. He held his breathe and his face paled incredibly. Sora screams._

_Roxas is dead. _

Sora woke up in cold sweat. That was the most weirdest and gruesome dream he had in his whole life and half wondered why in the world did he dreamed about the new kid dying after just one meeting (six if you counted for every period yesterday).

He instantly forgotten about the dream as he checked his clock and paled.

7:04 am

School starts at 7: 24 am and he lives about two miles away.

'_Shit.'_

Without a second thought, he jumped out of bed and began changing.

/--/

Sora's never been late for school and he didn't want to tarnish his record. His perfect attendance is the one thing in school he's proud of. Running early in the morning and feeling the cold wind hitting his body is horrible.

Sora made a sharp turn around the corner and knocked over with an unsuspecting figure. Sora fell back harshly on his behind with papers flying all over the place.

"My homework!" he thought, picking up the pieces of his pages. He was engrossed with the thought of making it to school in time and picking up his homework, he almost rammed into the same person… which also happens to be the bi-polar teen, Roxas-who's looking kinda mellow and out of it…eating a bagel casually like nothing is wrong with the world except they're going to late for class and get detention.

That and school is about another six blocks away! Seriously, what the heck is up with the blonde? Was he high?

"You're going to be late for class - why the hell are you chewing that piece of bread like nothing's wrong!?" Sora exploded. There was an audible cry of 'Shut up!' from the neighbors and dogs howling when Sora finish. Roxas didn't respond; instead he just shrugged. Not waiting for an answer, the brunet ran down the street and disappeared from sight, leaving the new kid standing under the lamppost…still chewing on the piece of bread.

Roxas just stood there and wondered if the brunet remembered to turn the hour back last night._ "Guess not." _He couldn't help but snort softly at the brunet's predicament.

He took another bite of his bagel and walked down the street towards school, savoring the fresh morning air before heading towards school. It took him twenty minutes and the blonde watch Sora giving him a death glare for reasons he know why but he still wear his expressionless face for the brunet to guess his mood. Inwardly, he's very, very amused and the gates locked, they have a chance to have another small conversation.

"Why didn't you remind me about the time change?" Sora asked calmly as possible.

"You didn't apologize when you rammed into me," Roxas responded with perfect monotone. "I saw no point of telling you."

"You can be a jerk, you know that?"

"I know," Roxas nod slightly. "And I doubt I'll change anytime soon."

"Why not?"

"Because," Roxas began, "It'd what expected from people like me, Sora."

"What's expected from you?" Sora asked.

"Everything but nothing at the same time," Roxas answered mysteriously. Sora left eyebrow twitched slightly. He'll never understand Roxas' attitude.

"You're impossible," Sora grumble, turning away, concluding the end of their conversation. They waited outside of the school until the custodians open the back school gates. Roxas checked his watch one more time.

7: 15 am

Still enough time to buy a cinnamon bun to eat before class.

/--/

News spread around about Roxas' so-called abuse became a wildfire at school the next day. Everybody has heard of their ever so popular girl in the school. It went how _'oh, the mean and sexist new kid spiked her down with the volleyball because the bastard felt like it_' and being so popular, most people believed her side of the story. By the time the news finish spreading, the blonde was already receiving death threats.

"_Get a life."_ Roxas thought grumpily, eating the burger he bought for lunch. He wasn't enjoying anything at all considering four guys decided it was fun to tackle him down during basketball. Really, is that girl worth the trouble?

Seems like it as a group walking towards him from where he's sitting.

"You're on our table, jerk," one of the girls from the group informed. Roxas resisted his urge to roll his eyes, knowing this is some kind of conspiracy. Somewhere around that time, water was poured on his lap. The crowd around his laughed.

Roxas should have eaten his lunch at the field or something. Then again, they would have followed him or something. The students need to find a new hobby other than bullying the new kid.

"Aww…did the new kid wet his pants?" The crowd laughed harder. Roxas didn't bother to talk. Action is more powerful than words.

One moment the crowd was laughing, the next thing they knew, the boy who was responsible on pouring the water on Roxas went flying back to the nearest tree…which was about six or seven feet away. The laughing immediately stopped. Silence reined that section of the school. Roxas uncapped his bottle of water as he walk forward and pours his water on the student.

"Now we're even," Roxas responded harshly. "Don't ever do that again or I'll make you regret it." He turns to the student body. "That includes everybody else that tries anything else." Then turns away, heading towards the locker room where he could get a change of clothes. He won't mind wearing shorts for the rest of the day.

Though, it wasn't even five steps he took, five guys appeared out of nowhere and tackled him down to a dog pile. The crowd went wild once again as Roxas struggles to push the others off of him. His attempts were futile seeing that the guys on him were twice his weight. They were crushing his lungs and stars began to dance on corners of his eyes. Home school seems like a pretty good idea right about now. Then the blonde remembered he doesn't have the money to afford the tuition.

'_Damn life.'_

Without another thought, he passed out, remembering the last thing he heard were shouts and a pair of spiky hair.

/--/

"This is inexcusable, Anderson," Roxas listened to the head honcho of the school. After the fight, Roxas woke up an hour later where he was immediately ushered to the principal's office. Inside, he met the six jocks that were just having a nice talk the man. The atmosphere changed immediately. "You have been in my school for two days and already you stirred up a fight…in two days!" As much as the blonde wants to roll his eyes he couldn't unless he wanted to be in a deeper hole than he is now. The system is easy and simple to Roxas: jocks tackle him, they point fingers at him and he gets the punishment. Why?

They're jocks: the big muscular boys with brains filled with dirty thoughts, thinking with their libido and they have rich parents. It's obvious they get the special treatment. The principal continued on ranting for another fifteen minutes until the seven bodies in the room heard knocking. The principal stopped in mid-sentence and cleared his throat. "Come in."

Roxas turn away from the principal, took a glance at the newcomer and frown. It was a man in his late twenties, wearing a black suit and a red tie. His black hair defying gravity and spiked up. Spike hair seems to be the latest hairstyle among some people.

"Hello, sir," he began. "I'm Zack Fair, one of the social services. Roxas is my charge and what seems to be the problem?" Roxas caught a glance at the guys and saw them glaring at him. He glared back.

"You! I want that kid out of my school right now and never bring him back!" the boys could swear a vein is about to pop.

"Well…you can't do, sir," Zack began with a sheepish, calm grin.

"And why not!?" the man snapped back. "I'm the principal!"

"This is the boy's first infraction," Zack responded. "I'm pretty sure you read your book too. You can't kick him out on the first infraction."

"Yes I can." The principal was beginning to act childish. "Take this orphan out of here, now!" Roxas' eyes narrowed when the jocks' face look surprise at first and then snigger.

'_The new kid is a bastard with no family!'_ Roxas thought of the new rumor's new highlights.

"You have no leeway on this," Zack said suddenly serious. "Zero Tolerance applies when Roxas has a weapon – which he doesn't."

"He probably has one! You nor I have searched him yet!"

"If you're going to search Roxas, you have to search the other boys too." Zack took a breath and continued. "And looking at your handbook it says, it doesn't matter who started the fight, everybody that was involved must share the same punishment." The head honcho looked like he was going to explode. Roxas imagined his head exploding and blood gushing out in an almost similar manner of a volcano.

"Fine!" the principal cried. "All of you get out of here! You'll all receive your punishments tomorrow!" Angry eyes landed on Roxas. "Don't think you're off the hook yet, boy! The next time I see you do anything funny, I'll kick you out of here so fast, your head will spin!"

'_Right, in your dreams.'_

Roxas and the six jocks walked out of the office with dumb grins on their face while Roxas gave a glance at Zack before walking out of the office, ahead of the jocks and heading for art. Roxas maybe a blonde but he's not stupid. Now everybody's going to know he's a bastard.

"_Fuck."_

"Roxas," Zack calls. The blonde stop and turn to the man. They waited for a moment for the other boys to disappear and out of sight from the halls before he could continue. "You better stop doing this, man. The system won't tolerate you any longer if you continue getting yourself into fights again."

"They started it," Roxas rolled his eyes.

"I already mentioned in the office it doesn't matter who started it first-"

"'Everybody receives the same punishment.'" Roxas finishes for Zack. "I know the book by heart, Zack."

"Then why don't you follow them?" the man asks seriously.

"If you have a problem with me, Zack then take it up with the system," Roxas announced. "I have nothing against you but I'm a walking billboard of bad luck. If you stay with me any longer, it'll cost you your job." Zack sighed, loosening his tie before ruffle Roxas's hair.

"Nobody will be your charge so you're stuck with me, kid," Zack announce. "I'm not going to be home for a week, I have a meeting three towns from here so take care of your self, kay?" Roxas nods, before walking past Zack and headed for his last period. He entered his art class and eyes turn towards him for a brief moment before turning back to their artwork with little noise. There was a murmur here and there from students about their drawings and nothing more. He glances at Sora and was a bit surprise to find his backpack next to the brunet. He walks over there, sits down next to the brunet. Sora didn't look at him today; Roxas guessed the brunet is still mad about this morning.

"…Sorry," Roxas apologized. Sora stopped in his mid-stroke and looks up at Roxas. Silence was his response and both boys could only agree that the silence is the sign of their mutual apology.

"I'm done with your picture," Sora announced, turning his artwork to the blonde. The painting was a picture of Roxas in Sora's point-of-view in English with him looking up at one of Cloud's lecture with a pencil ready in his right hand, ready to write down any important notes.

"It's a nice picture," Roxas compliments and Sora beamed with happiness, their argument from the morning forgotten. "Can I keep it after it's graded?" A blush was evident on the brunet's face.

"O-Okay…"

For a moment, Sora could have sworn he saw a small smile on Roxas's face.

/--/

Kairi enter her home, irritated and an ominous aura surrounded her. The news of the new kid knocking down the head varsity team member, he was suppose to be her date for the next dance, now she can't be seen around with some jock that got his ass kicked by the new kid. That'll ruin her reputation for sure.

"Stupid new kid, ruining everything in my life," she almost screamed. She fell onto her bed, resting her head on her pink pillow. Just as she was about to go to sleep, a giggle was heard inside the red-brunette's room. Kairi's eyes snapped open and got up, searching for the owner's of the voice. She doesn't have a sister so who made that sound.

"Over here," the voice whisper, Kairi turns around, facing her reflection. She was shock when she noticed her reflection wasn't exactly following her movement. It waved slightly and smiled. "About time I got your attention. I was starting to worry."

"Who are you?" Kairi demanded.

"I'm you, sweetie," her reflection responded with an innocent smile on her face, the same smile Kairi would use to draw people close towards her and be her 'friends' and admirers.

"Yeah right," Kairi crossed her arms. She's not in any mood for jokes. "There's only one me. You're just a nobody."

"So the mortal says," her reflection responded, taunting. "Then tell me, what's holding you back?" Kairi raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me?"

"Killing the jerk, Roxas," her reflection said in a highly mock voice. "Oh right, you don't have the guts to do so."

"Hey, watch it," Kairi hissed.

"Or else what?" her reflection asked. "You're going to humiliate me? Sorry but you're just humiliating yourself in the end."

"You're. Not. Me!" Kairi cried.

"I've got everything I want," her reflection began. "The perfect body the guys want to taste. Great followers – even if I dump them in the end. Easy-to-manipulate teachers. Winter Formal Queen with the hottest jock as my date. Why did the new kid rejected me!? I'm the perfect cheerleader everybody wants!" her figure gave her a smudge look. "Isn't that what you have thought of since high school started?" Kairi glared at her reflection.

"Just who are you?" Kairi demanded.

" I'm you." Her reflection responded. "Or was that suppose to be the other way around…" Kairi stare back at her reflection.

"Haha…you're me?" Kairi's voice dripped with sarcasm. "This is totally insane. I've gone mad."

"So you believe me in killing the dumb blonde?"

"You're crazy," Kairi responded. "Get out of my sight." The reflection frowned, then sighed.

"I knew you wouldn't see my way," she began. Kairi heard the sink tap twisted from the bathroom next door and seconds later, the clear liquid began to seep into her room.

"Hey!" Kairi rushed over to attempt and try to brush the water back, failing miserably. Then the water sprang to life, binding her in place.

"For me to take control…" Kairi felt an immense pain shot through her body and she fell to the floor, unconscious. Her reflection grinned maliciously. "I'm going to have to send you to a deep slumber for a while."

/--/

The cloaked figure could feel the shadows around him growing restless as the sun set and families were heading back inside to their houses. That's a good thing considering of the vibes a certain part of town was giving off. He followed the darkness, allowing the shadows to pull him towards the source of the problem, which led him towards the park next to the fountain in the middle of the park. This is where the vibes were giving out its radiance the most and now it's gone.

The shadows grew more restless, and he didn't dare go against their judgment. Restless shadows always tell him the stronger the opponent he will be facing.

True to what the shadows warned him, the water from the fountain sprang to life, turning into sharp daggers, and falling down on the blonde like rain but only fast. He quickly dodges and jumps away from them. Half of them were destroyed by shadows as they retaliated to defend their beloved master.

He also makes a note not to drink water for a while. It's evil.

This also meant a certain bitch is back.

"It's been a while, Reimei," Kairi, who the figure knows isn't really Kairi greeted venomously. She stood under the glowing full moon, which strengthen her control of the water. That is a bad thing. The figure dropped his hood and revealed his face to the fake-Kairi. Roxas stood there with his face revealed to his attacker.

"It hasn't been long enough, Aquas," Roxas spat back, but his voice remained monotone. The water sprang to life and created thousands of tiny needles, pointing towards Roxas.

"Aww…can't you be a little happier?" Aquas asked in a mock cheerful tone. "After all, the last time I heard you laugh was before you ripped me apart from my once glorious body." Her voice tone became vicious. "I'll take you down before any of the other three could wake up. I promise you this _will_ be painful." Needles flew and Roxas prepared himself for the impact. He knows this is going to be a long night.

/--/

The next day, Sora notices a lot of difference between Roxas and Kairi.

For one, Kairi is wearing a friggin cast on her right leg, causing uproar in the student body. She claims it's an accident from home with an upbeat attitude, which made many believe. Sora didn't buy that crap at all.

Roxas is…well quiet throughout the whole day wearing a very blank expression on his face. The blonde is anything but quiet, at least once he would respond to the brunet.

This wasn't Roxas at all. Whoever this person was or is, it surly puts a whole new meaning for silence, especially in Pre-Algebra.

"Roxas, can you tell me the answer for problem number two?" Mr. Xigbar called the blonde. Roxas has yet taken out any paper or calculator for the warm-ups today.

"…"

"Taking you a calculator out would be helpful, pal."

"…" Roxas was like a frozen statue. Sora and the other students eye Roxas from the corner of their eyes. The blonde didn't move or speak. Hell, half the students thought he's dead. It was another two minutes Xigbar finally gave up waiting for the answer.

"Sora," Xigbar called out. "What's the answer of problem A?" Snapping out of his musing, he quickly responds.

"One point eight-hundred sixty-seven," the brunet responded. Xigbar nodded and wrote the answer on the board and continued ranting. At that point, Sora zoned out again.

Sora knows something is definitely wrong with Roxas and no matter what; he's going to figure out whom this Roxas really is.

Even if has to resort to stalking…

Which the brunet did right after school; it was weird, Sora has to admit that. This is the first time he's following another and his body seem to be on autopilot, following the blonde. The other teen never looks back so Sora didn't have to go hide in some random bush; you never really know what's really in those plants anyways. They reached to an old building and Sora hid behind a blue car and watch Roxas enters the house. Sora examines the front part of the house. The grass is dead, the color of the house seems moldy and stripping away from the building and there's no car so he could presume the boy's parents are working.

"What are you doing?" Roxas's voice called from behind, making Sora jump. The brunet turned around and almost had a heart attack there and then seeing the blonde standing there. He turns back to the door and to Roxas.

He KNOWS Roxas entered the house moments ago…but then how did he get behind him!? Immerse with that thought, he didn't really notice he was tugged into the blonde's home until the door slammed behind him.

"Wha-? Since when-?" Sora asked. Roxas didn't answer, instead, he continued tugging Sora upstairs and down the hall, of course, Sora resisted. "Hey! Let me go, Roxas!" The blonde's grip is too strong and then he halted at the end of the hall, with a door in front of him. Roxas grabbed the handle and twist it open.

Then he roughly pushed him inside, causing the brunet to fall onto the ground.

"Ow…" Sora was about to yell at Roxas until he caught a figure sitting on the bed. Sora's jaws dropped.

/--/

Date Began: December 23, 2007

Date Completed: February 12, 2008

Author's Rambling: For the record, there's a senior in my freshman year that had never been sick on a school day. Not even in kindergarten. I thought that was impressive, it's almost scary.

Roxas is a growing boy. XD He has to eat something else other than a bagel. X3

I'm working on two more projects besides Predetermine and Hunter and the Hunted. I'm not telling what are they so I'm going to keep them in my computer until I'm good ways done with the two I'm writing now. I'm evil this way.


	4. The Look Alike

Chapter 3

Two Roxas.

One of them stood next to him by the doorway while the other Roxas sleeps peacefully on the bed with arms and chest wrapped with bandages. Sora prayed that he was dreaming this. It's impossible to see two Roxas… but then again, it seems a lot of things are possible with Roxas. He did humiliate and sent a football player flying after all.

"What happened to him?" Sora asked the Roxas standing in front of the doorway.

"Some bitch decided it would be fun to attack him yesterday," 'Roxas' responded with a bored tone, as if it was a natural thing for them. Sora stare blankly the 'Roxas' that talked to him. "He said something about revenge and how a woman's wrath is worst than hell…blah, blah, blah…then he collapsed and has been sleeping since." He also muttered something about red-glowing demonic eyes and sharp nails.

'_Kairi,'_ that was the first thing Sora thought of. He knows she couldn't have done something like that but then the broken leg does kind of match the story.

"If that's Roxas over there…who the _heck_ are you?"

"Oh me?" 'Roxas' said with an innocent glint in his eyes. "I'm Roxas' twin brother, obviously. My name's Ven, at your service…with a wicked smile." The blonde grinned evilly and Sora mentally noted on the teen's sanity.

"If you're Roxas' brother, then how come you don't go to school?"

"I'm home-schooled but I would trade places with Roxas every once in a while." Ven informed. "It's fun that way."

"…Oh." Then a thought popped up in his head. "Hey, how come you talk now? You were practically a statue all day at school."

"What is this? Since when did we start playing Twenty Questions?" Ven responded, sounding slightly amused. "My voice is slightly different from Roxas as you can see right now, I didn't feel like talking that much around large crowds, and I don't know how he acts at school so I just decided to give everybody the silent treatment. Sorry if I offended you in any way, don't hate my brother for this…" Sora felt a small smile form on his face. Ven is a very amusing and a caring guy…completely opposite from his brother, Roxas.

Yet, he couldn't help but to feel like everything Ven had said is a lie.

"Can I ask you something personal about Roxas?" Sora asked.

"Roxas doesn't have any baby pictures," Ven responded, attempted to lighten the mood. "If you're trying to blackmail him in the future." Sora shook his head.

"Umm…no. I meant like does Roxas have any-"

"Will you two shut up? Your voice can possibly raise the dead at this rate," Roxas's sudden question got the two talking teens's attention. Sora and Ven turns towards the bed to see the sleeping blonde finally awake and not happy at all. Ven was the first to react, jumping into the bed next to his brother; arms wrapped around Roxas's neck and cuddle much to the bed-ridden boy's protests (Not that he really argued; he gave Ven a grunted and a weak push before giving in). Sora was torn between confusion and amusement…but a ting of jealousy seeing Ven was getting a bit too close. It was then Roxas finally pushed Ven off the bed. "You're going to open my wounds…again." Roxas stated plainly and Ven pouted slightly.

"Fine…fine, sorry," Ven apologized. "I'm going out now…so you two play nice!" He snickers as he walked out of the room and Sora turning red for absolutely no reason. He quickly recovered when Roxas was kind enough to throw a smelly shirt at him at his face. Sora quickly grabbed the shirt and tossed it to the ground. That killed the brunet's worry mood.

"What was that for now!?" he cried.

"I have to figure out a way to snap you out of your dirty thoughts." The blonde responded with almost a small hint of teasing, just almost. He got out of his bed, wobbly. His legs were shaking as he steps forward towards his closet. Despite of that, he kept up a dignified aura around him and continued to walk straight as if a stick was shoved up his behind. Sora couldn't help but to worry.

"What happened to you?" Sora asked.

"None of your business," Roxas responded as he pulled out a t-shirt. He slip into the clothing easily, covering his bandages completely.

The tough act, Sora mentally rolled his eyes. After seeing so many movies online and the drama going around school, he recognizes that tough act anywhere.

"Why?" The closet door slammed, causing Sora to jump. Roxas glared darkly.

"I said it's none of your business," Roxas repeated. "They're my problems to handle, not yours…and if you are, I'll have to kill you," Sora winced slightly at the k-word. That word always sends chills down his spine. Roxas gives the 'tough guy' act a whole new meaning. Especially the way the blonde talks.

"But I was worried about you…"

The blonde exhaled sharply, muttering something under his breath as he made his stroll over to his drawers and searches for an item while Sora stand at the doorway. It wasn't long till Roxas found the object he was looking for and tosses it to Sora. The brunet clumsily caught it – almost dropping it to the floor. Sora examines the object Roxas has given him – it's a three-pointed crown necklace probably made from stainless steel. Sora gave Roxas a questioning look.

"It's a protection necklace…said to have mystical powers," Roxas explained. "It'll protect you from the supernatural. Some say it has some ancient powers – it will draw the person who gave it to you…all that kind of shit. I have my own already so you can keep that one. It's been passed around to people to people throughout the ages and it's freaking old," Sora eyed Roxas weirdly. Is he really losing it – Roxas is being so freaking nice…

"Thanks… I guess," Sora said.

"Now get out," Roxas ordered, not looking back at Sora. The brunet's face has confusion written all over it.

"Huh?"

"Don't 'huh' me," Roxas responded, annoyed and slightly pissed. "I want to shower and change. So that means my _boxers_ will be coming _off_…" the blonde trailed when Sora got the idea and ran downstairs and out the house. Seconds later, Ven reappeared into the room behind Roxas, his arms wrapped around the other blonde's waist protectively like a parent protecting their precious child.

"Are you all right…master?" he asked. Roxas didn't answer, he fell onto the carpet floor and leans on Ven for support.

"I need to buy some damn painkillers tomorrow," Ven buried his face into the other's hair.

"Sora's too innocent for his own good…" he began. "Don't hurt him, okay?" Roxas felt a small smile trying to appear on his face but it came out looking like a small twitch.

"Why do you think I would do that?" Roxas responded with a bit of a mysterious tone. Before a couple seconds passed, he spoke again. "Now stop pretending to be my brother and go look out for any trouble." Ven nodded slightly before turning into a black mist and sinking into the ground and away from Roxas. The blonde scoffed – Ven could at least put him back in bed.

/--/

Sora stare down at the necklace, he was still not sure if he should wear it or not. In the sidewalk probably blocks away from the blonde's house by now, minutes had passed and he still couldn't decide. Roxas did give it to him as a gift but he also kicked him out of the house.

'_No…you ran out of the house, embarrassed when you imagined Roxas naked.'_ His mind retorted. Sora blushed even a deeper shade of red. Sora shook his head furiously, trying to ignore that thought. Damn art teacher for making him think of these vile thoughts.

"It's not like that!" he yelled out to nobody in particular.

"What's not like what?" Ven asked. Sora froze for a moment before turning around to see Ven leaning on the wall grinning coolly. Sora quickly stuffs the necklace into his pocket and averted his eyes away from Ven.

"Nothing," Sora lied as he continued looking away from the other boy. Ven walks forward and stopped about two feet away from Sora. His face looks curiously thoughtful as he examines the other teen.

"You're a horrible liar, Sora," Ven responded. "Roxas gave you a necklace." Sora took a step back. He could feel the heat radiating from his face.

"I really don't know what you're talking about!" he protested. Ven took another step forward, his grin still on his face.

"It's evident that he gave it to you," Ven continued. "Your face gives it away…you're really a bad liar." Sora's head hung low, there's something about Ven that could make you not argue back at him and Ven probably knows that too, jerk. He quickly changes the subject.

"So why are you here?" Sora asked.

"It's a free country," Ven responded. "I have the rights to walk down the streets without being ask…do I?" Sora sighed and shook his head.

"Nope."

"Then let's go to your house," Ven declared. Sora eyes look up, shocked and confused. "Well, this is a dangerous part of town, Sora." Ven rolled his eyes. "You haven't exactly examined the rundown houses all and broken streets?" It was then Sora just barely noticed them. He felt so stupid and at the same time.

"…No, you can't come to my house," Sora responded, looking crestfallen. Ven cocked his head to the side, looking kind of innocent and curious. Then panicked slightly.

"B-But it's dangerous to walk home alone!"

"My mom is…_overprotective_," Sora explained, emphasizing the word overprotective.

"Mom? Where's your dad?" Ven asked, worry is evident in his voice.

"He's dead," Sora automatically answered. Ven's curiosity dropped and a sad look replace the previous look.

"I'm sorry," Ven apologized. "I'm being rude; invading your privacy a bit too much."

"It's all right," Sora reassured. "It happened a long time ago…I'm use to it."

"Can I still walk you home…just to be on the caution side. My way of saying sorry," Ven said.

"You could just say sorry."

"But I'm just an innocent teen trying to do a good deed for a friend and walk him home from a bad neighborhood," Ven insisted. "And I can be your temporary bodyguard. I can so kick butt with one hand tied behind. I can protect you!"

"But who's going to protect me from you?"

"…Touché." Ven stood next to Sora, linking his arm with the brunet. "But no matter, I'm going to follow you until you're home. A friend of Roxas is a friend of mine's."

"Roxas hardly has any friends, does he?"

"Yep."

"And you're saying this without the care in the world because you're high on something?" Sugar? A possibility.

"Maybe." Amusement and a wicked glint flashes in Ven's eyes.

"I'm can't believe I'm being followed by a deranged twin." Sora groaned while the blonde laughed. Sora couldn't help but think this is a start of a weird friendship.

Still, the feeling of Ven lying is still there.

/--/

Thirty minutes later, Sora and Ven finally reached the brunet's house safe and sound. Ven glances at Sora's house and frowns.

The front yard is a mess, the grass looks like it hasn't been cut in ages, and the steps leading to the front door is crack. It looks lonely, old and unwelcoming. It reminds him terribly of haunted houses. Only Sora's house seems ten times scarier. It's a wonder how Sora have managed to survive to his adolescent years.

"So this is my humble abode," Sora joked slightly, forcing the humor out of his mouth.

"You don't have to force yourself," Ven said. "Roxas and I have lived worse situations you could have possibly never imagined."

"Like what?" Ven thought carefully.

"In an apartment with two foster parents. Our foster mum went insane and tried to kill Roxas but ended up killing her husband instead. She was partially unstable in the first place." When Ven finished, Sora's jaws were wide open. "Plus, there was a crystal meth maker a floor above us."

"And this is normal for you guys?"

"What can I say? We have terrible karma, landing in the worst foster families," Ven stuck out his tongue playfully. "But we managed to get by. Lady Luck is by our side every once in a while…probably it's because of our good looks." He turns to the sunset, the sky is almost dark and lights from houses are shining inside of them. "Have you ever wondered why everybody is inside the house this early?" Sora shook his head.

"Everybody was told that evil wanders at the streets at night…but I think that's an old grandma's tale for saying rapists and robbers." Ven laughed merrily.

"Or it could mean things beyond your wildest nightmare can't possibly comprehend are lurking out at the streets at night, devouring little kids." The brunet made a face.

"A rather wild imagination you have…" a nervous chuckle coming out from his mouth.

"It's true but nobody would really believe that but I do," Ven pointed at him proudly. "I bet you'll see it someday too, Sora." Then Ven turn a 180 and made his way back home. "Oh well, better get back home before the creatures of the night comes. That would be bad. Good night."

"Bye…" Sora waved, watching Roxas's twin walk away.

/--/

That night, Sora began to dream about the underground sewers, he didn't know why he's dreaming about the sewers but he was restless – as if he knew something is going to happen even when it's not gonna happen soon. It was strange how he could tell with shadows whispering gibberish in his ears but he understood what they said.

"_Above you."_

He instinctively jumps away from the giant shadow coming down on him. Sora got a clear look and trembled, wanting to pass out but his body wouldn't responds. His body just stood there, unafraid or unflinching and ready to react and retaliate. A giant reptile like creature standing in front of him, glaring at him with yellow eyes and its tongue flicker slowly and lazily, tasting the air for its prey's scent.

Sora realize that prey is him.

"You knew I was coming," it hissed, a deep growl coming from its throat. Sora was even more afraid when he felt no control of his body. That's when he began to wonder if this body is really his or somebody else. "How?" it asked.

"Your foul scent can be smelled from miles away from my home," Sora's lips move on it's own accord. He was freaking _mocking_ that thing? "It's a wonder how nobody didn't notice a giant ugly brute when they smell one." The giant lizard's eyes flashed and rage can clearly be seen in its eyes.

"Foolish brat! I will teach you a lesson you'll never forget," he roared, arms raise up, ready to hammer him to the ground. He could already imagine the giant bloodstain on the ground and people gathering around to see his body flatten to the floor and cleaners have to literally scrape him off the sidewalk. He snorted, slightly amuse.

…Where did the amusement come from?

"Die!" the monster roared, coming at him again. Sora dodged the giant fist and raised his hand before swinging down at nothing. Instantly, behind him, the shadows shot out, lashing out like a snake or whip across the face and through the creature's left eye. It screamed in pain and Sora wonders if anybody hears this…but the shadows around him slithered and swirled around him around him and the monster, covering them, creating a container around them. The lizard took a step back, one hand/claw over the bleeding wound it just received. "What…are you?" Sora took a step forward and it took a step backward.

"I was just a legend among every creature," Sora began, his right hand clenching into a fist. He could feel the shadows around him began to move towards him, ready for him to call for the final strike. "I'm very much alive and I have only one duty I was born to do: protect the ones I created eons ago. You are also one of my many creations but you chose to live like this. You killed so many of them and I cannot allow you to hurt them anymore. Beings like you have one punishment: death." The lizard fell onto it's knees, submitting defeat. Shadows came up and bind it, immobilizing it.

"P-Pl-Please no," Sora felt sadist satisfaction from the sight and wondered why.

"You never showed remorse for the humans you devoured, hurt and abused," Sora said icily. "Why should I show that to you? You were about to raid a home tonight and kill a family you have been stalking for the past week. Especially that little girl you saw in that family, innocents are always delicious when they are cover with fear, aren't they?" With a wave of his hand, Sora watches as the binds pull and the lizard, stretching it until the limbs were severe one-by-one. It was gruesome as blood splatter on Sora's face. It mortified him when he didn't feel fear or horror at all; he felt assured and contentment. The shadows around him shifted again, receding, taking the corpse with it to a place where Sora doesn't even want to know. The shadows brought him back to sewers and he stares down at the quiet flowing waters.

Sora finally got a clear reflection on his face and his jaws dropped. It wasn't his face he's at all.

It was Roxas…and on his face is anger. Pure anger staring back at him.

That's when Sora finally realizes Roxas is looking back at _him_.

/--/

Sora woke up immediately, grasping deeply for air with his mind racing a million thoughts per second. Images and memories of that dream racing through his eyes like a movie, looping over and over again for him to see.

There was no way he was Roxas just now or the demon…lizard…monster, whatever the heck that thing was, was real. Yet, his mind screamed everything was real: the blood, the bones and clear contentment of destroying that thing.

Sora hugs his legs close to his chest, afraid to go to bed for the rest of the night.

Sora is deathly afraid to go to school to meet up with Roxas tomorrow.

/--/

Date competed: March 13, 2008

Author's Rambling: So springline is here and we're doing so many things and memorizing so many things, leaving me no time to really write. I hope I didn't lose a lot of readers during this time period. . I hope not.

So, the usual process…

Review and I'll give you a cookie:D


	5. Interlude : Shadows

Interlude: Shadows

Roxas has always known he was different from everybody the moment he could form his first coherent thought. It was his detachment for everything he had to everybody: the children in the orphanage, the social workers who tried to help him, and everybody else he has met in his life. He didn't think he was a monster. He thought of himself more as an incomplete person missing his feelings. Thus, that is why he believes he is unable to feel.

(Which, he didn't know which is better: a person without a heart or a person without a soul.)

On his fourth birthday, that's when the dreams began. It was odd seeing an older version of yourself with those same eyes that looks just as detach. Around them was eternal darkness and not even a shed of light could pierce through the abyss. There were no words exchanged as if they both knew the answers already and Roxas didn't even have to ask who in the world is the stranger. When he opens his eyes the next day, he saw the world in a completely different view.

(There are monsters all around him.)

The moment he stepped out of the house and see people move through the busy part of town, he could see people oddly with horns and fangs. People he notices who didn't have horns or fangs seem oblivious to this. One word flashes through his mind:

_Demons. _

No suprise, it didn't frighten the boy. No, he didn't care as he walks down the streets like the normal looking people were. The dreams are much more livid now as the person now more and more people appears in his dreams and all of them have the same expression and blank eyes on their face (he saw a couple of them wearing togas, at first he thought they were wearing dresses). It didn't take him that long for him realizes that those people didn't just look like him, they _are_ him. Or was he a part of them? Roxas never ponders about that for too long, it gets on his nerves too much. He's just six and like any kid, they don't want to think much unless it's necessary.

(Hn, the only aspect that reminds Roxas he's not completely inhumane.)

Then came the voices when Roxas turned seven.

They were barely audible at first. It was nonsense at first when Roxas heard them but as time went by and the more foster homes he went through like toilet paper, the louder the voices became until Roxas could finally hear them loud and clear.

"_Welcome back, master."_

It didn't take the boy to figure out a way to form small shapes with the shadows. In fact, he was absolutely fascinated with them as he manages to make bigger shapes(sometimes, if he had enough energy, he could make a deform human but only for a couple seconds). In his dreams, there were no longer faces looking back at him, they were replaced by memories. Memories that didn't belong to him but rather to those people he had seen before the shadows came to him. On his sixteenth foster home, Roxas didn't wonder why he didn't complain to the workers that they just handed him to a dysfunctional family, especially the mother. The hard-working husband didn't realize she's a prostitute. Having a double life as the perfect housewife disgusts Roxas a lot but being alone in the house gave the boy the perfect time to talk to the shadows even if he only did talk back to them with one-word sentences. The shadows were chatty, that's for sure. They explained through the centuries, Roxas was the first to finally hear them instead of a bunch of gibberish(which led the boy to wander if any of the other faces he had seen went mad from the constant nonsense).

"_The cycle is weakening!"_ the shadows squeals in delight. _"Your vow is coming true, the Fates are on our side. We can eat candies again!"_ Roxas also added a mental note that the shadows are freaking crazy to an extent(he never fed the shadows candies, not wanting to know the consequences if he did). Perhaps the shadows were lonely, and they weren't able to talk to their liege for so long. They're trying to make up their lost time for not protecting their god all this time till now. Though, Roxas thinks that the excessive talking isn't necessary but as memory serves Reimei use to talk the them when they're alone but the young child is sure as hell he isn't going to change his silent habits anytime soon.

"_The poor naïve man."_ The shadow would say in a singsong voice and they make up pitiful remarks towards that man. Roxas didn't mind as the mother sweet act looked like acid to the boy but the foster father seems sincere than most foster families he had.

"_Bad fortune shall befall onto them very soon,"_ the shadows whispers. Roxas didn't need to be informed about that. He was expecting some sort of child abuse from the mother later on but he didn't expect this at all.

(The demons from the streets attacking the home of the reincarnated god one night.)

Blood can be smell from the outside; this isn't the only house the demons were hitting tonight. Yet still no sign of fear were shown across the boy's face, it was anger.

"Don't hurt them!" The shadows immediately pounce on that order as they sprang from the darkness of the house and unpleasantly dragged the demons into the darkness he didn't notice, as he was engrossed in his anger, the shadows were dragging his foster mom away as well(the shadows took her away because the blonde is disgusted by her secret life and sometimes wishes her gone, the anger the blonde feels made that emotion even stronger).

"Lily, no!" his foster father cried before his wife disappears into the shadows. Roxas had no control what so ever when the foster father that was the first to show him affection turn into a raging monster. "You DEMON!" He lung for the boy and Roxas stood there, stunned for the first time and instinctively the shadows jump in to protect the liege. They jump out from the darkness of the house, this time like a bat. They knock the raging man from the back of the head and Roxas watch the man drop to the ground like a rag doll.

Cold, wavy-black hands hug Roxas from behind protectively like a mother (though he knows his real mother is dead but this wasn't so bad). Those hands slowly took a human shape and color; the shadows have taken a complete form of a human, consoling the young child with sweet nothingness.

When authorities arrived, they found themselves a block massacre (thanks to the demons) and their survivor is a child who was sitting alone in the darkness with an unconscious man in front of him. The police took him away and handed him to the social services, meeting his newest agent/helper(his old one died from 'natural' causes): Zack Fair.

"So where do we start, blondie?" And the cycle continues.

Somewhere down the line, Roxas began hunting down demons as a pastime. He just _dares_ them to try and jump him again.

/--/

Date Complete : April 13, 2008

Author's Rambling: So my mind died over my Spring Break and…I got kinda laggy thanks to Crisis Core. I am in love with their graphics and I got hooked to it because of that. I'm sorry! For now, I'm putting up and interlude and the next chapter will be complete in…a week and a half? Maybe. –bricked-


	6. Wounds and Alcohol Don't Mix

Chapter 4

Sora has managed to avoid Roxas for the past week. It wasn't hard, seeing the blond didn't look like he wanted to talk Sora in any way or form. Which was fine with him and Sora have notice for the last three days it's been Ven who comes to school instead of Roxas. On the third day, Sora finally musters enough courage to talk to the crazy twin during lunchtime.

"So…where's Roxas?" Sora asked as the two sat under a tree near the PE area. They were far from the student body so no gossips will start about them. Which is a good thing; who knows what kind of rumors can spawn up and everybody knows Kairi makes the most 'believable' rumors. Emphasizes on the word _believable_.

"Sick," Ven sighed sadly. "That or he just really want to be alone for a while. He was really pissed off about something a couple days back." Sora looked like he got punched on the stomach but Ven didn't seem to notice. "Don't worry, I think it was the pain from his side injuries."

"It's better that way, I guess. He'll heal faster." Sora then frowns. "But he'll have to catch up for class." Ven snorted slightly and waved it off.

"Roxas is a smart guy," Ven began. "He could have been a prodigy if we didn't have all those accidents and events happening in his life…but he doesn't want any jealousy among peers too. Though I believe he'll be a cute distraction for the college classes especially among the girls." The blond snickers with amusement.

"I can imagine," Sora his frown turning slightly into a small smile.

"Plus, minors can't be hired for high paid jobs and Roxas can't own a house at the age of eleven," Ven added, taking a bite on his apple. "So what's the point?"

"…But you guys are living alone already," Sora pointed out.

"Oh. That's Zack's house," Ven rolled his eyes. Sora blinked.

"…Zack?"

"He's Roxas and mine's social service watcher," Ven smirked. "He's been watching on our case for a couple years now. He's a great guy to hang around with once you know him. He's very laid back and he's the one who managed to keep Roxas from getting expelled last week. He's been planning to adopt the both of us."

"That's a good thing…right?" Sora asked. "At least he won't be insane like your last guardians."

"You'll be surprise how many can crack under pressure," Ven smirked slyly. "Roxas will come back tomorrow. Let's go before we're late. Rumors have been going around saying one of the math teachers was found dead in an accident gas leak explosion. We're getting a new teacher tomorrow." Ven left, leaving Sora to wonder vaguely what kind teacher the school will be getting.

That thought was gone when the school burst into flames in the middle of the night. The fire burned down three-fourths of the campus and the thoughts about classes the next day were push back behind the mind of the students the next morning when they saw the black charred remains of their school. Nobody noticed the tall redhead with a black hook over his head smirking as he walks down sidewalk in the morning.

/--/

Walking down the park the next day felt like a refreshing experience for Sora. School was burned down to the ground from a 'mysterious' explosion and nobody has to go to school until further notice, which is great since nobody really wants to go to school anyways.

Plus, he didn't have a chance to finish Cloud's essay that's due today.

"Get out of the way, Sora!" Ven's voice cried, snapping the brunet out of his daydream. Sora didn't have time to move away when a certain blonde in black helplessly toppled him. Ven rush over to their side and immediately questions their welfare.

"Hey, are you guys all right?" Ven asked. Sora winced at the forming migraine in his mind. Roxas on the other hand, tended his right arm.

"Are you all right?" Sora asked, reaching out but Roxas pull back, almost afraid of the brunet's touch.

"I'm all right," Roxas said, getting up, still holding his bleeding arm. It looks like the blonde didn't scrape too deep to bleed too much but from his wrist to elbow Sora wondered how fast he went and how did the brunet survived that assault of speed.

"Ah! Sora," Ven cried out, surprised. "I'm so sorry! I was skating with Roxas here and we got too carried away with racing. It was my fault I goaled Roxas." The endless jabbering was giving Sora a headache.

"It's all right, Ven!" Sora cried as he tried to calm the other twin down. "My house isn't that far away from here so you guys can come over and clean Roxas's wound before it gets infected." Ven nodded vigorously.

"Lead the way!" Ven cried, carrying his brother and his' skateboards with one hand and the ever so grudging Roxas with the other. It took them about six or seven minutes till they reach Sora's home. Roxas refuses to enter leaving Ven and Sora to go and find the first aid kit alone. It was another three minutes till Ven emerges outside with Sora and a bottle in his hand. There's a sheepish grin on his face.

"There's no rubbing alcohol," Ven began. "But I found this instead." He raises the bottle for Roxas to read.

Alcohol. Real alcohol.

"Get that away from me," Roxas hissed. He tucks his bleeding arm away from his menacing twin. "Over my dead body."

"Suit yourself," Ven shrug. He made eye contact with Sora a brief moment and in that second, they both knew what to do. Sora, didn't know what came over him; in that short brief insanity the two of them pounces on the hissing teen, pinning Roxas down effectively. Roxas winced at weight and the suppress horror in his eyes when Ven unscrewing the bottle. "Don't worry," Ven reassures. "This will only hurt just a little…not." Then the teen pour the liquid onto Roxas's bleeding arm.

Sora thought the look on the blonde's face was priceless at that moment. Helping the crazy twin was so worth it for just this moment. Ten minutes after the hilarity, Ven finish bandaging up his twin's no longer bleeding and infection free arm. Though Roxas looks like he was just ready to kill someone the slowest and the most painful way as possible.

"Come on Roxas," Ven said cheerfully. "It wasn't that bad. Right, Sora?" Sora was still in a chuckling fit as he put away the first-aid kit with the bandages under his bed.

"That's because you two were enjoying my pain," Roxas reminded as he examines his brother's work. "It's too tight."

"Live with it," Ven blew a raspberry before turning to Sora. "So what should we do next?"

"Do what?"

"Anything," Ven responded, leaning on Sora's chair. "I mean what do you normally do once school's out?"

"Homework."

"…After that?"

"Studying."

"After that?"

"…Walking…?" Two pairs of blue eyes stares back at him.

"…We got to get you a new hobby." Ven declares blankly.

"What do you suggest?" Sora asked.

"Movies?" Roxas declares to the other two's surprise.

"They're like ten dollars for a ticket." Sora protested.

"Ever seen a movie?" Sora shook his head sadly, shocking Ven.

"You never seen a movie?!" he almost cried. Sora shook his head, indicating a no. "Even my usually silent, bipolar brother have seen at least ten of them!" Ven informed, ignoring Roxas's warning glare. Five seconds later, Ven grabs the brunet by the arm and began dragging him out of his bedroom and down the stairs. Roxas was following them close behind.

"Where are you taking me?!" Sora cried. Ven has a firm grip on his wrist.

"To the cinema, duh, and Roxas's paying."

"You cheapskate," Roxas glares at Ven. They exited the house and Sora swears Ven's going to leave a mark on his wrist. It wasn't long till Roxas decided to help his twin out and tug Sora's other arm.

"We could watch Prom Night," he suggested. "It's the only one that I think is decent enough to watch right now." Ven's eyes seem to gleam under the sun.

"Yeah!" Sora saw a gleam of evil and mischief in Roxas's eyes for the first time and shivered. Something tells him he's not going to enjoy the movie at all.

Twenty minutes later, Sora was right. The movie scared the life out of the boy.

/--/

"Give me my body back!" Kairi cried out from the mirror. It wasn't long when she woke up and found out she's in the mirror and Aquas isn't. She was even more furious when the ex-goddess didn't retreat back into her mind to 'sleep.' The goddess removes the cast from her leg, revealing no injuries. Aquas smirked. The perks of being a divine being is that they can heal faster than any normal being. Then her smirk was slowly replaced with a scowl. Curse Reimei all those years ago, trapping her and her sibling's soul in human hosts. If the universe hadn't created a fifth god, none of this crap would have happen.

The universe is second on her list to destroy.

"Be quiet, you brat," Aquas commands. "It's past your bed time and I've slept long enough to last for thousands of years." Kairi felt a huge pressure pushing her away and under.

"You –" Kairi didn't finish what she was about to say and vanish from the mirror, leaving Aquas to see her own. She looks perfect in her own taste but something about her hair isn't right. It's too red, reminding her too much of…

"Ardrlin," she hissed, turning to the newcomer sitting on her bed. A man looking in his twenties wearing a black leather coat over his black suit, his brilliant emerald eyes with red hair spiked upwards and a single tear-shaped tattoo printed under his right eye.

"It's been a long time, Sis," he greeted back with sarcasm. "But in this life, I'm Axel."

"So you were the one who set the school on fire," Aquas sounded very pleased.

"You expect me to have patience with a group of mortals for six hours a day?" Ardrlin questions. "You've gotten a bit dumber the last time I last saw you." A sphere of water formed just mere inches from his face. "And don't you dare throw that at me or I'll burn your house down in a heartbeat." The water slowly retreated back away slowly.

"Nice to know how things never change," Aquas grumbles bitterly.

"We have all the time in the universe to change," Ardrlin reminded.

"And yet we're mortals," Aquas reminds him with rage in her voice. "Damn our foolish brother. If it was just him back then, we wouldn't be in this position."

"But it's all going according to our little brother's words: we're overcoming the universe's hold, we will awake to our former glory soon, sister," he reassures.

"But before that happens, I want the dark-half of our brother dead," Kairi declares.

Ardrlin smirks. She wants to weaken their brother, with one half of their brother dead, they could hunt down the other with ease. That's fine with him.

"I like the way you think, sis."

/--/

"That movie sucks," Ven whined. "We should have left the moment we finished the first quarter of the movie, we could have gotten our money back." He turns to Sora. "So how did you like it?" Sora didn't respond, he was so pale, the twins were pretty sure the brunet turned into a walking-dead from the two-hour span. Roxas held onto Sora's hand just in case decides to stray away as they walk through the busy streets. Ven couldn't help but grin. "Hey Roxas, give the kid a kiss to wake him from the dead." He joked, Roxas glared but Sora seems to have snap out of his zombie mode and made a face to Ven.

"I'm never going to the movies with you two again," he vows. "I didn't enjoy it one bit."

"Aww…but you did enjoy hugging Roxas to death," Ven teased as he plots to drag Sora and Roxas into future horror movies. It was amusing to him watching the brunet burying his head into his brother's shirt, the perks of putting his bi-polar brother in the middle of the three.

They walk towards the park, where the sun has begun to set.

"The sunset is sure redder than usual," Ven comments. "I wonder if it's another omen."

"Omen for what?" Sora asks.

"A sign for something good or bad," Roxas responds as he too looks up at the sunset, watching it as it slowly sets behind the mountains. "Ven believes the school fire is another sign."

"A sign for an early vacation for you guys," Ven stuck his tongue out at Roxas. "You're lucky, I have to have home school still." Sora blinks.

"Exactly why do you have to be home schooled why Roxas goes to a public school?" he asks.

"It's complicated," Ven waved off. "We just want to let the know world Roxas is an only child."

"But that's not right…" Sora frowns deeply. "It's like being a shadow..."

"Or there is a possibility that a brother never existed in the first place and 'Ven' is merely an imagination of the boy named Roxas," a voice rang out. The trio turns around and meets face-to-face to the stranger. A man with red hair stood two or three yards away from them and the twins got defensive. "Reality works in a strange way, altering balance those who are living and those who aren't living, isn't that right… Roxas?"

"Do you know him?" Sora asks. He regretted that when he notices how the blonde's eyes became icy cold and serious.

"I never met him in my entire life," Roxas responds stepping forward between the newcomer and Sora. "I think he's a serial rapists looking for young targets. Who are you?" Axel raise and eyebrow.

"Of course you know who I am already, brother. Do you wish to know to know my mortal name as well?"

"So we could call 9-1-1 and warn them about an unregistered sex offender on the loose." Sora blinked, did Roxas just joke?

Dear god, the world is going to end.

Hmm, he should knock on wood just in case.

"Roxas…" Ven whisper warningly. Roxas nodded.

"It's Axel," Axel introduced. "Got it memorized in that big brain of yours?"

"Right, let's run," Roxas declares, grabbing Sora by the wrist and almost tripping the brunet. Roxas is very fast despite of the frail, pale look. Axel grinned from behind.

"Nice try," he raises an arm up, producing a ball of fire in his hand and releasing it at the trio. Ven caught a glimpse of the flames and react instinctively.

"Roxas! Sora!" Ven cried, jumping forward between the fireball that he took squarely on the chest and fell backwards.

"Ven!" Sora cried, rushing over to the blonde but Roxas held him back. "What are you doing, Roxas!? He's your own brother!"

"He…existed once," Roxas admitted. "But not in this lifetime." Sora didn't know what to say, thoughts were racing through his mind and he didn't know what to do.

Ven is dead, a random stranger killed him and Roxas is just standing there as if it was nothing.

Sora opens his mouth, about to protest but it was Axel's voice that cut him off.

"The illusion is broken," Axel said. "No more shall this false life interferes with reality anymore. Then again, Ven is just another 'what if?' of who you could have been, wasn't it." Roxas gritted his teeth.

"Ven…was me!" he cried, raising his hand, shadows swirled all around them, moving according to Roxas's order. Then they took form of sharp needles like Aquas' nights before and launch them towards Axel. Course, Axel being smart on his feet, dodged the incoming sharpies, dodging whatever he can and threw fire at Roxas when he finds himself an opening. Course, Roxas already has the shadows to neutralize the threat of flames before they reach their young master. Sora couldn't help but watch this in morbid fascination and horror.

"What are you guys?" Sora asked, breathless and scared. Roxas hesitated for a moment before turning to Sora with a cruel smirk on his face.

"Gods with nasty tempers," he responds. "And this city probably won't stand after today. You should get out of here…" he turns to Ven. "Get the boy out of here now, Ven."

A moan came from the corpse and Sora almost had a heart attack when Ven got up to a sitting position, irritation and annoyance can be seen across his face.

"Do I have to?" he asked. "I want to beat that asshole down." He said pointing at Axel.

"I'm not in the mood for a conversation," Roxas glares. "Get him out and keep him out of the way. That is an order," Ven stood up and gave Roxas a mock salute.

"Whatever the young god wishes, gets," Ven respond with sarcasm before glaring at Ardrlin who was still busy dodging the needles. "I'll get you back with a lovely hole on your body later on, you mother–" He became a mist of shadows around Sora before he could finish his sentence, courtesy of Roxas. Sora panicked as he desperately tries to swat away the mist with no luck(which was stupid in the first place since it's just mist).

"Roxas! Please, help me!" he cries out as he watch in horror his body sinking into the darkness. It feels so cold and dead. Was Roxas trying to kill him?

Then he finally realizes: the person in front of him isn't Roxas at all.

"Who are you?" he asks again.

He didn't hear Roxas's answer. The darkness numbed Sora's mind and the brunet drifted off to oblivion.

It was hours later Sora woke on the cold gravel just outside of town and with half the population unconscious. In front of him is the whole town was burned to the ground with nothing but ashes and black-unstable buildings. He already has a clear idea what had happened when he was out.

"Roxas! Ven!" he screams out, but receives no reply. "Roxas!"

Sora wanted answers but he couldn't find Roxas among those who survived and wonder if the blonde did ever survive the fire. He never got his answers. His mother was one of the unlucky ones and Sora was sent to the orphanage far from his town(what's left of it anyways).

Seven years has passed since then and Sora did not forget the face of the blonde and his pretend brother.

/--/

Author's ranting: I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! With Springline finally over, I have more time to write now! Whoot!

But I'm down from the championships the other day so yeah. I'm still not over the fact we lost to a school with 'Barbie Girl' as one of their songs, another school playing 'Beautiful Day' and another school that stole the idea of my school's drumline show from _last year_…and they got first place out of nowhere!! They killed U-2 and Aqua for me, thanks a lot a-holes!

-Sighs and breathes- Sorry, I need to really rant right about now about the championship and how unfair the judging was.

…Shutting up. Now.

Click the purple button on the bottom!!


End file.
